Hard Stuff -

Hard Stuff was an English hard-rock trio that made the 1972/73 albums Bulletproof and Bolex Dementia on Purple Records. They cut a prior single as Bullet and gigged as Daemon; archival releases from both iterations surfaced in the 21st century.

Members: John Du Cann (guitar, vocals), John Gustafson (bass, vocals), Paul Hammond (drums)

Background

Guitarist John Du Cann joined the late-stage Attack and led Andromeda on a 1969 album. He joined Atomic Rooster for their 1970/71 albums Death Walks Behind You and In Hearing of. In light of Rooster organist Vince Crane’s erratic leadership, Du Cann and drummer Paul Hammond formed a new band with bassist John Gustafson, recently of the organ-rock trio Quatermass.

As Bullet, the new trio linked with Purple Records, the label venture of hard-rock heavyweights Deep Purple.

On November 19, 1971, Bullet debuted with “Hobo,” a Du Cann original backed with Gustafson’s “Sinister Minister,” both self-produced Purple sides. After a spell as Daemon, they settled on the name Hard Stuff.

Bulletproof

Hard Stuff released their first album, Bulletproof, in May 1972 on Purple Records.

The album retains former frontman Harry Shaw on “No Witch at All,” “Time Gambler (Rodney),” “Millionaire,” and “The Provider – Part One,” although the sleeve credits only the trio. Gustafson wrote “Monster in Paradise” with his former Episode Six colleagues Ian Gillan and Roger Glover. Cann sings “Jay Time” and “Hobo”; Gustafson handles five lead parts.

“Jay Time” struts through a lurching shuffle, a greasy riff and rotary-treated singing. “Sinister Minister” charges through hard-driving chord changes and high sustained cries. “No Witch at All” stomps on a midtempo figure with a break-heavy entrance. “Taken Alive” prowls around a slinking riff before a bare snare coda. “Time Gambler (Rodney)” lopes through cowbell accents and a coarse guitar figure.

“Millionaire” barrels on a straight four-beat drive, then quickens into a frantic solo passage. “Mr. Longevity – RIP” coils around a serpentine riff and broad lead break. “The Provider – Part One” shuffles through a loose studio jam with an offhand close.

A1. “Jay Time” (2:50) – Cann
A2. “Sinister Minister” (3:30) – Gustafson
A3. “No Witch at All” (5:38) – Gustafson
A4. “Taken Alive” (3:14) – Gustafson
A5. “Time Gambler (Rodney)” (6:11) – Cann

B1. “Millionaire” (6:04) – Cann
B2. “Monster in Paradise” (4:33) – Gustafson, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover
B3. “Hobo” (3:25) – Cann
B4. “Mr. Longevity – RIP” (4:35) – Gustafson
B5. “The Provider – Part One” (2:31) – Cann

Hard Stuff recorded Bulletproof during August and September 1971 at De Lane Lea Music Centre in Kingsway, London. Cann, Gustafson, and Hammond produced and arranged the sessions with engineer Louis Austin, a soundman on 1971/72 albums by Mainhorse, Flash, and the Deep Purple release Fireball.

Castle, Chappell & Partners designed the gatefold sleeve around photography by Tony Burrett: the team behind the Fireball visuals. Hard Stuff revised the original layout to remove Shaw from the pictured lineup following his departure.

Purple previewed the album on April 7, 1972, with a shorter single version of “Jay Time,” backed with “The Orchestrator,” a non-album Cann–Gustafson exclusive.

A. “Jay Time” (2:36)
B. “The Orchestrator” (3:17)

Angel Air added both single tracks to its 2011 CD edition. Purple Records and Cherry Red later included the album, the 1971 Bullet single, “The Orchestrator,” and an early mix of “Monster in Paradise” on the first disc of the 2017 collection The Complete Purple Records Anthology 1971–1973.

Bolex Dementia

Hard Stuff released their second album, Bolex Dementia, in March 1973 on Purple Records.

Cann and Gustafson each wrote five songs. A road accident in Belgium during the album’s production injured Cann’s back and ribs and broke both Hammond’s legs. The trio completed the record but ceased activity soon after its release.

“Roll a Rocket” barrels through a blunt riff and broad guitar solo. “Libel” struts across a loose, syncopated figure. “Ragman” jolts through dissonant turns before a concentrated lead break.

“Sick ’n’ Tired” prowls around a dark, stalking motif. “Mermany” halts and restarts around a Middle Eastern contour. “Jumpin’ Thumpin’ (Ain’t That Somethin’)” bounds through slide figures and comic wordplay. “Dazzle Dizzy” stomps through a pounding refrain and sneering satire. “Bolex Dementia” fractures into distorted speech, electronic squeals and dissonant power chords.

A1. “Roll a Rocket” (5:19) – Cann
A2. “Libel” (3:58) – Gustafson
A3. “Ragman” (3:01) – Gustafson
A4. “Spider’s Web” (4:55) – Cann
A5. “Get Lost” (3:01) – Cann

B1. “Sick n’ Tired” (4:04) – Cann
B2. “Mermany” (5:58) – Gustafson
B3. “Jumpin’ Thumpin’ (Ain’t That Somethin’)” (2:55) – Cann
B4. “Dazzle Dizzy” (3:41) – Gustafson
B5. “Bolex Dementia” (3:41) – Gustafson

The original US Mercury pressing reversed the LP sides, an order retained on several later editions. The sequence above follows the original UK Purple pressing.

Hard Stuff recorded Bolex Dementia at AIR Studios and De Lane Lea Music Centre in London, then remixed the album at AIR. The trio again produced the sessions with Austin as engineer. Austin also worked on the 1972 albums Who Will Save the World? by the Groundhogs and Shades of a Blue Orphanage by Thin Lizzy before engineering Queen’s 1973 debut.

Hungarian-French painter István Sándorfi supplied the UK cover image. Sheila Green directed the package, and Fin Costello photographed the group. Costello also worked on 1973 sleeves for Manfred Mann’s Earth Band and Nazareth; his design and photography appeared on Uriah Heep’s Sweet Freedom during the same year.

Angel Air added the subsequent standalone single to its 2011 CD edition. Sommor later restored the original gatefold artwork for a remastered vinyl edition with an illustrated insert.

“Inside Your Life”

Purple issued the standalone “Inside Your Life” single on November 30, 1973 (b/w “(It’s) How You Do It!”). Gustafson wrote the A-side; Cann supplied the reverse.

A. “Inside Your Life” (3:04) – Gustafson
B. “(It’s) How You Do It!” (3:04) – Cann

Post Hard Stuff

Du Cann and Hammond rejoined Atomic Rooster for their 1980 self-titled album and its 1983 followup Headline News.

Gustafson joined Roxy Music for a two-year stint, the longest of any bassist. He appeared on their 1973–75 albums Stranded, Country Life, and Siren. He also played on Swedish jazz-rock albums by Ablution and Janne Schaffer and guested on UK titles by Ann Odell (A Little Taste) and Steve Hackett (Voyage of the Acolyte). In 1976, he joined the Ian Gillan Band for a three-album stint; the second pairing between the Episode Six alumni.

The Entrance to Hell

Kissing Spell first issued the early tapes in a shorter configuration under the retrospective billing John Du Cann’s Daemon during the 1990s. An expanded 2006 edition carried the name Daemon, while Angel Air assigned its revised 17-track edition to Bullet in October 2010.

The recordings preserve the pre-Hard Stuff quartet of guitarist John Du Cann, bassist John Gustafson, drummer Paul Hammond, and singer–percussionist Harry Shaw. The sequence combines early versions of material later recut for Bulletproof with unreleased Du Cann compositions and two studio jams. Du Cann wrote the program except for the five noted titles.

1. “Door Opens” (0:08)
2. “Millionaire” (6:04)
3. “No Witch at All” (5:39) – Gustafson
4. “Taken Alive” (3:15) – Gustafson
5. “The Soul That I Had” (5:37)
6. “Entrance to Hell” (4:30)
7. “The Orchestrator” (3:24) – Du Cann, Gustafson
8. “Hell, Demonic Possession” (3:45)
9. “Fortunes Told” (3:29)
10. “Sinister Minister” (3:36) – Gustafson
11. “Jam” (1:39)
12. “Time Gambler” (6:15)
13. “Monster in Paradise” (4:41) – Gustafson, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover
14. “Jay Time” (2:53)
15. “Mr. Longevity” (4:40) – Gustafson
16. “Door Slams” (0:03)
17. “Jam (The Taker)” (7:12)

The quartet recorded the material during 1970–71, before the Hard Stuff name. Du Cann retained the tapes, which supplied the masters for the later archival editions.

Purple Records and Cherry Red consolidated the group’s label output on the 2017 two-CD set The Complete Purple Records Anthology 1971–1973. Tony Dixon mastered the collection, which includes both studio albums, all four Purple single sides, and an early mix of “Monster in Paradise”; Malcolm Dome supplied notes for the 16-page booklet.

Discography: